In the past, various approaches have been advanced of weapon systems in a close combat situation. Also the systems have not always been self contained and/or capable of solving complex problems with command, control, and coordination. Therefore, it can be seen that there is a need for a system that is self contained and has the capability of solving problems with command, control and coordination from a concealed position. Also, there is a need of a system which can make multiple target engagements in a short period of time and still remain in a concealed position or environment.
Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide a missile system for a short range fiber-optic guided missile that can effectively function from a concealed position.
Another object of this invention is to provide a fire control system that can accurately detect a target and accurately fire and control a missile to a point of impact with the target.
Another object of this invention is to provide a fire control system that is readily usable from a concealed position on close combat targets.
Other objects and advantages of this invention will be obvious to those skilled in this art.
In accordance with this invention, a fire control system for short range, fiber-optic guided missiles is disclosed in which a vehicle which can be hidden from potential targets has a mast mounted target acquisition system that is controlled by an operator from the vehicle to locate a target, confirm that the target is actually a target, and center the target in the field of view and begin tracking of the target. Once the gunner or operator recognizes a target and makes a decision to attack, a fire command is initiated by the operator which feeds heading information into a missile control computer and feeds reference video information from the target acquisition system to an automatic target handoff correlator which stores this reference video information in its memory. The missile control computer then fires a fiber-optic guided missile vertically and the missile control computer uses the heading information to cause the missile to fly a predetermined trajectory and be directed into the field of view of the target. The missile has a seeker in the nose thereof that will be looking in the direction of the target when guided by the missile control computer through signals transmitted through the fiber-optic connection. With the seeker looking at the target area, the missile seeker which is a video seeker transmits its video information through fiber-optic link to the missile control computer and the automatic target handoff correlator which compares the video information from the seeker to that stored in its reference memory to find the point on the xe2x80x9clivexe2x80x9d image from the seeker that best matches the reference video information. The automatic target handoff correlator then generates signals for correcting the positioning of the seeker and the missile. This information from the automatic target handoff correlator is provided to the missile control computer that sends signals over the fiber-optic to the missile to cause the seeker to be directed so that the target is centered in the field of view of the seeker. Once is the target is in the center of the field of view of the missile seeker, the automatic target handoff correlator then sends a signal to a missile autotracker that takes over and maintains the missile on course to impact with the target. The system also provides for multiple engagements by utilizing multiple missiles and multiple missile autotrackers.